1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an airbag cushion for protecting a driver and passengers when a vehicle crashes.
2. Discussion of Related Art
In recent years, consumers attach importance to the safety of a vehicle as well as the performance or design of the vehicle when selecting the vehicle. In line with this trend, vehicle manufacturers set an important goal for technology development in order to secure the safety of a vehicle. In this technology development circumstance, an airbag module has recently been in the spotlight of means for improving the safety of passengers when a vehicle collides. Active research has been done in the airbag module. In recent years, there is a tendency that the airbag module becomes an indispensable item for a vehicle.
When a vehicle crashes, the airbag module is adapted to deploy before a passenger collides against internal structures of the vehicle and consume the kinetic energy of the passenger by employing the elasticity of the airbag cushion, thus protecting the passenger. However, a pressure when the airbag cushion is deployed is very high and, therefore, the amount of kinetic energy when the airbag cushion is deployed is very great. If the kinetic energy is transferred to the passenger without change, the passenger can suffer injury due to the airbag cushion. It is therefore necessary to properly control the pressure within the airbag cushion.
However, if the pressure of the airbag cushion is too lowered, the airbag cushion may be difficult to penetrate the panel of the driver seat or the passenger seat and then deploy. In this case, the airbag cushion may not be deployed at an appropriate time because a speed at which the airbag cushion is deployed is too slow. For this reason it is preferred that the pressure when the airbag cushion is deployed be actively controlled. Accordingly, there is a need for means for actively controlling the pressure when the airbag cushion is deployed.